March Round-Up

Silapak Trotchaek Pneik, The Factory Contemporary Arts Centre, West Gallery, A+ Works of Art, Kunsthall Trondheim and Starch
By Alana Malika

Chan Dany, ‘Kompoan and the French model’, 2021, gouache and tempera on acid free paper, 27 x 37cm. Image courtesy of Silapak Trotchaek Pneik.

Soft Opening and Fundraiser by Silapak Trotchaek Pneik
Led by Programme Director Reaksmey Yean, Silapak Trotchaek Pneik at Phnom Penh is a contemporary arts space founded in 2019. The name ‘Silapak Trotchaek Pneik’ translates from Khmer to mean ‘art that pleases the eye’ and is also an ode to a defunct Khmer art collective. The gallery will hold their soft launch and fundraiser showcasing works by Cambodian artists Chan Dany, Chea Sereyroth, Chhim Sothy, Heng Ravuth, Khiev Kanel, Pen Robit, Sao Sreymao, Srey Bandaul and Svay Ken at YK Art House. All proceeds will go to achieve Silapak Trotchaek Pneik’s vision to become a creative hub for art newbies, veterans, and everyone in between to engage with contemporary Cambodian art and push these discussions to the mainstream.

Silapak Trotchaek Pneik, 18 February to 24 April, by appointment only.

Songs for dying
Kunsthall Trondheim in Norway presents a solo exhibition of ‘Songs for dying’ by Thai artist Korakrit Arunanondchai for their upcoming film of the same name. The installation weaves together personal anecdotes about the artist’s late grandfather with pop culture allusions to ‘The Hunger Games’ trilogy as a commentary on the ongoing student protests against authoritarian rule in Thailand. Using the analogy of a ghost to represent suppressed and forgotten histories, Arunanondchai contrasts the personal fear of losing a loved one with the collective fear of losing one’s freedoms to capture the fundamental fragility and resilience of human desire. As part of the exhibition, the artist has designed a reusable mask for visitors to purchase here.

Kunsthall Trondheim, 11 February to 18 April 2021.

Cheong Yew Mun, ‘In the Absence of Our Bodies’, 2020, 3-channel High Definition Video Projection, 2 Channel Audio. Image courtesy of Starch.

Public Dreams, Private Myths
Joseph Campbell once said that “ Myths are public dreams, dreams are private myths”. Taking inspiration from this quote, Cheong Yew Mun, Kar-men Cheng and Paul Hurley will be showcasing their work in a group exhibition ‘Public Dreams, Private Myths’ at starch, Singapore. These works ponder the persevering social constructs that people have passed down like mythologies and to which they continue to prescribe. The exhibition makes space for inquiries on seeking individuality beyond the artificial structures of society, perhaps the ones we explore during our midnight slumber.

starch, March 6 to 30 2021.

Ruangsak Anuwatwimon, ‘Excavated Gods’, 2021, film still, single channel video: HD, colour, sound. Image courtesy of the artist

The Hunters
To conclude the ‘Pollination’ series, The Factory Contemporary Arts Centre at Ho Chi Minh City organised ‘The Hunters’, a duo exhibition featuring Indonesian artist Maryanto and Thai artist Ruangsak Anuwatwimon curated by LIR and Kittima Chareeprasit. Maryanto and Ruangsak investigate the exploitative practices happening at the base of Mount Merapi and the course of the lower Mekong, uniting the twin narratives from across the seas of governments assuming the mythical role of ‘hunters’ fueled by greed. Following a year long research project, the exhibition will present artistic installations, research documents, and video interviews disseminating the lives of local peoples threatened by these issues.

MAIIAM Contemporary Art Museum and The Factory Contemporary Arts Centre, 19 March to 30 April 2021.

Ahmad Fuad Osman, ‘Dreaming of Being a Somebody, Afraid of Being a Nobody’, 2013, UV prints on mirror. Image courtesy of A+ Works of Art.

Holding Pattern
A+ Works of Art presents works by Ahmad Fuad Osman, Chong Kim Chiew, Hà Ninh Pham, Luke Heng, Nadiah Bamadhaj and Roslisham Ismail aka Ise. The exhibition title ‘Holding Pattern’ is a double entendre that references both a state of waiting and the oval flight path aircrafts take when awaiting grounds for landing. The collection of works imagines airplanes circling over an airport as an analogy to the uncertainty following Malaysia’s second Movement Control Order (MCO 2.0). The show aims to be a space for visitors to process the collective feeling of being suspended in motion without a clear destination amid the upheavals of the pandemic.

A+ Works of Art, 23 February to 17 March 2021.

Luis Antonio Santos, ‘Each time I looked around, the walls moved in a little tighter’, 2020, UV print on plexiglass, wooden frame, 152x101cm. Image courtesy of West Gallery.

Grayscale
‘Grayscale’ is a group exhibition featuring monochrome works by Andres Barrioquinto, Arturo Sanchez Jr, Hamilton Sulit, Jigger Cruz, Kaloy Sanchez, Luis Antonio Santos, Lynyrd Paras, Mark Andy Garcia, Neil Pasilan, raffy t. napay, and Winner Jumalon in West Gallery at Metro Manila, Philippines. Curated by Soler Santos, the collection of black-and-white pieces invites viewers to notice alternative artistic elements, such as shadow and light, that let figures, meanings, and themes emerge. By presenting colourless scenes, the exhibition asks viewers to contemplate the versatility of interpretation in monochromatic schemes.

West Gallery, 18 February to 20 March 2021.

Manit Sriwanichpoom, ‘Pink Man Opera 5. A Blind Man Groping To See An Elephant with His Hands’, 2009, Lambda print, 120 x 150cm. Image taken from Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery.

Tonight the Air is Warm
Mid-career Southeast Asian artists Sarah Choo Jing, Nicole Coson, Genevieve Chua, Yee I-Lann, Budi Agung Kuswara, Wawi Navarroza, Jo Ngo Ngo, Manit Sriwanichpoom, Robert Zhao Renhui join together in ‘Tonight the Air is Warm’ at Kristin Hjellegjerde’s London Bridge gallery. The group exhibition interrogates the commonality of human identity and communal belonging while diverging in an exploration of the region’s distinctive artistic landscapes. Viewers can immerse themselves in Southeast Asia through the cultural specific photo, print and video installations ranging from tropical gothic to folklore surrealism.

Kristin Hjellegjerde, 26 February to 27 March 2021.